The Joining
by Scottthespy
Summary: Sequel to 'My Meeting With Death', many have been waiting for this to finnaly move forward. Rating to be safe, please read the latest chapter, explaining the delayed continuation of this story.
1. Of Goodbye's and Decisions

Hi! Well, it's been a while, hasn't it? I'm so sorry it's taking so long to get this done. I'm still on the second chapter, and the block is hitting me hard. Unfortunately, my homework load increased, and I just can't seem to get more work done on this fic! Now, I have some things I need to say, and it's gonna take a while. First: do not under any circumstances expect the same speedy updates and such as in the last fic. Second: if you are new to this fic, and have not read the first one, go do that. This is NOT the kind of sequel that can be read before the original. The original, by the way, is called 'My Meeting With Death'. Third: the first couple of chapters, maybe even the whole thing, are/is not as good as the first fic. Now, I must also ask about one of the characters to come up later in the story. I want a vote. The character is a demon. Or rather, a half demon, quarter human, quarter dragon fifteen year old girl. Her name, and her demon species, is Gecko. She is based off of one of my best friends. My question is, should she be one demon with multiple personality disorder, or three identical demon sisters? Send me your vote in a review! Now, there is one person I have to answer in this fic even though their review is for last fic.

Animeotakufreak: Do we have to pick just one? I like the visiter from Canada

No, you don't have to pick just one, its just that the one the most people pick is the one I'll do _first._ And that one just so happens to be this one.

Disclaimer: I hate this stupid thing…it reminds me of how Hellsing isn't mine.

I watched silently as the moving van pulled away. Three months since we moved to London, almost as long since I had disappeared. My parents had looked everywhere for me but, of coarse, they couldn't find me. I was now part of an organization that didn't exist. Watching the moving van leave with all their belongings, I could barley stop myself from running to them. Sir Integra was at my side. I needed a formal reintroduction, and my parents had to hear a revised version of what had been happening over the last few months. Just as my mom got in the car, Walter walked up and asked if they were "Mr. and Mrs. Wenger". They said yes. He smiled.

"I'm terribly sorry we've just caught up to you now. You see, we have your daughter." My parents both jumped on him, shouting things like 'where is she, what have you done with her?' and 'what do you want?'. But Walter had expected this, and nimbly stepped out of the way.

"Please, I did not mean it that way. We are an elite group, and your daughter has been taken into our care. She is right here, to see you." He turned. I walked out, wearing my robe. The idea was, I had been put into a very secluded art community, and was learning play-acting, gymnastics, and acrobatics. They had been trying to find my parents to tell them all this time, but I couldn't remember my address, having just moved to London. Of coarse, at seeing me, my parents rushed in and hugged me so tight I thought I'd pop, but I only hugged back just as fiercely.

"Oh my child, where have you been? Are you okay? Have you missed us?" my mother was crying so much that my robe was actually getting wet.

"Mom, it's alright, I'm fine. I'm with this performing arts community. They can give me a better education than the schools in Canada that you can afford to send me to, and I'll be training for a job as an actor. They're also training me to be an acrobat, and a gymnast. And you don't have to pay a cent! I'll be able to come back every few months and visit you in Canada, but this is what I really want. Please, can I stay?" Sir Integra walked forth.

"I'm the director of this program, and your daughter shows great potential. My name is Integra, pleased to meet you." She held out her hand for my stepfather, then my mother to shake.

"We're happy to get our kid back, but really, it took you far too long to find us and tell us. Even the police couldn't find her!"

"If you'd like, we could talk about it over tea." Offered Seras. She had come along because she was so cute, and would probably make a good impression on my parents about what the rest of the 'students' were like. My mother looked at her.

"Oh, you're another of those kids with the colored contacts. I think those are so cool. And plastic fangs too, are you practicing for the part of a vampire?" I slapped my forehead. My mother, the question machine. Seras nodded enthusiastically.

"Yep! Im going to be Lucy in the up coming Dracula performance! It's going to be great!" my mother laughed.

"Well, it seems like the students play nice."

"Except in fight scenes." I joked. Tony, my step dad looked at his watch.

"Um, im sorry we can't go to tea, but we have a flight in one hour. We really can't miss it." Integra shook her head.

"Not at all! We'll be sending you reports of how your child is doing from time to time. Have a wonderful flight." We all said goodbye, and my parents drove off towards the airport. I sighed.

"I can't believe they actually let me stay."

"Well its not like they even had a plane ticket for you." Said Seras as we walked back to the car.

"Yeah…I guess that's true…hey, wait a minute! What was all that about Dracula?" Seras blushed.

"I wanted to seem enthusiastic about the things going on in the 'program'. I figured that, as a classic, Dracula would be a good story to go off of." I shrugged. The rest of the ride home was spent in companionable silence.

As I walked into the shooting range with my bow, I notice that every one had stopped firing. I looked around. Yes, everyone was looking at me.

"What?" I asked. Rubin, now no longer so afraid of me, walked over and put a hand on my shoulder.

"You have noticed," he whispered in my ear, "that this is the first time you've come in here with that bow while we're shooting? This is the first time most of the guys have seen a bow up close." After getting on good terms with each other, he and I became each other's guide to the opposite sex. He told me about the soldiers, and I told him what went wrong with that last date, _besides_ the flower vase stuck on his head. I shook my head to resettle my thoughts.

"So?" I asked. He smirked.

"Well, if they've never seen one, they're gonna wanna watch it work." I smiled.

"That makes sense. Here goes!" I walked to an empty stall, and pulled an arrow. Aiming the bow with one eye squeezed shut, I heard something. Whirling, I pointed the arrow at the ground, bow still drawn. Alucard was standing there, grinning.

"Can you hit a moving target?" he wondered out loud. I nodded.

"Good! See if you can hit me." He darted out of my line of sight. So, he wanted to play, huh? That cold be arranged.

"I can do more than hit a moving target," I dodged left and brought the bow up. "I can hit a target while moving!" the first shot missed him, but I had another arrow to the string seconds later._ That_ shot hit him buried itself in his shoulder. He grinned. Moving faster than I could see, he came up behind me, wrapping his arms around my torso. I struggled, but realized that no mere kick would win this. He had made his heartbeat mach mine, a taunt that would not be lost on me. I still held the bow, but it was useless now. I would never be able to shoot an arrow from here…the arrow! _Get ready Alucard. You might just have to re-think your views on human ingenuity._ _Oh really?_ I grabbed the arrow still stuck in his shoulder. Pull it out, use the heartbeat to aim, and plunge! His arms loosened, and with a well placed twist I managed to get free. Looking back, I saw him sneering down at the wooden shafted arrow now piercing his heart. The men gasped. Alucards eyes narrowed, and he melted. A whisper went through the crowd. They thought I had killed him. _Stupid soldiers,_ I thought,_ to think you so easily killed. _His chuckle filled my thoughts. _Yes, but these are mostly new recruits._ I heard the 'twang' before I realized what had happened. Alucard had taken up my bow, and shot me with the very arrow I had hit him with. The arrow grazed my shoulder, tearing my robe. I cried out, but managed to stay standing. He pinned me to the nearest wall, and dove for my throat, stopping inches away from my skin. His tongue ran over the scar from the _last_ time he had gotten this close. I could see Rubin from my position. He was torn between fear of Alucard and his wish to help me. Alucard grinned.

"You should get that looked at." He indicated my shoulder, then disappeared into a black portal in the floor. I slumped briefly, then went to retrieve my arrows.

"I'm sorry about the shooting display, but Alucard is right, I really _should_ get this looked at." I walked out of the shooting range, and into the front doors of the manor. Rather than turn toward the infirmary, I headed down the steps to the basement. The way to Alucards room was a maze, but I had memorized after the first few visits. No one knew about us visiting each other yet. I hopped it could stay secret. Alucard had never bitten me since the first time, but I could see that he had been thinking about it. This was the first time he'd done something so elaborate to get me away from the others, though. I wondered what it could be. Now, you might wonder, why not o to the hospital _first_? Well, I found out about an interesting vampire power a few weeks back. Their tongues have healing powers. Who knew? So, even though he had wounded me quite badly to get me away, we had no worries about my coming post haste. It was actually rather intriguing the way I found out about this ability. It had been one of our mid day talks. Noon to us was like mid-night to the rest of the world. He had given me tea to drink, and something he said caused me to drop the cup. As I was picking up the pieces, I cut my finger quite deeply. He got out of his chair and knelt next to me, and took my hand. Then, and this part made me blush, he put my bleeding finger in his mouth, and sucked the blood off. When he released me, my finger was completely healed, without a trace. I turned the last corner, and found his door already open. I took a deep breath and walked in. He was sitting with his feet up on the table, and his hat pulled down over his eyes. His hands were clasped over his stomach, and he looked like he was asleep. I tried to cross my arms, but was harshly reminded of my injury. He shifted his position.

"Have you thought any more on my offer, three months ago?" he asked. I glided to the other chair and sat.

"How could I not? You're always there, mocking, suggesting, taunting. There's no way I could even _try _not to think about it." he sat strait in the chair and faced me.

" And have you had enough time to make your decision?" he looked me in the eye. I sat back, suddenly nervous.

"Well, I like the talks we have together, and an eternity wouldn't be too long to continue having those talks. But still, I'm only fifteen. Of coarse…that could work to my advantage. There's one important thing that I haven't asked yet though." He smiled, but it was much softer than his usual grin.

"Ask away." He said.

"Well, I need to know if, if you want me to feed on live victims." There, I had said it. His eyes fell somewhat.

"You don't want to?" his voice was so low I could barley make out the words. I shifted my weight in the chair.

"Not unless they deserve it. But remember, at the moment I'm still human. My views might change when I die." His grin reappeared.

"But of coarse. I sometimes forget that you are not yet nosferotu, what with the way you look at things." I sighed. Having Alucard mad at me didn't really seem like a good idea. Especially since he could make the door to his room swing shut without even moving. He stood and walked over to me.

"Lets take care of this cut, shall we?" he slid the robe off my injured shoulder, and leaned in to heal it. It suddenly occurred to me that this was a great deal of blood, and very close to my throat. Would he try to turn me right now? He chuckled, and I froze as his tongue ran over the gash. It should have hurt, but it didn't. Alucard went slowly, healing it a little bit at a time, so that it took more than fifteen minutes to heal the cut. You wouldn't hear me complaining. This felt almost as good as being bitten had. He finally straightened.

"It is time to make your decision." He said. I took a deep, shuddering breath, and said: "If you want me, I'm yours." He grinned. Placing his hand on my shoulder, he pulled me through a black portal. When I opened my eyes, I found I was in the last place I expected to be; Sir Integra's office. Sir Integra herself was glaring at us, more so at Alucard. She stood from behind her desk.

"Alucard, what is the meaning of this?" he cocked his head to the side.

"Master, I have a request." She eyed him warily.

"A request?" he nodded.

"Yes. I would like to turn Scott into a vampire." Sir Integra choked on her breath.

"You want to _what?_" she asked. Alucard grinned.

"You heard me Master." She shook her head.

"I cant believe you would even have the gull to ask me that! How does Scott feel about this?" I walked forward.

"I'm ok with it. As a matter of fact, I'm more than ok. I want it. We've been talking about it for a while now. We both think it's the right way to go." Sir Integra looked from me to Alucard and back again.

"If you wanted to do this, why didn't you just do so and tell me later?" she sat back down to look over some paperwork. I clasped my hands behind my back and let my soon to be master do the talking.

"I need to train her properly before making the change. One of her power, her potential…" he shook his head. "She could destroy Hellsing before she even became aware of her new traits. That is why I must take her somewhere more remote. Somewhere I can make sure she comes over peacefully." Sir Integra thought about it for a few minutes before she said anything.

"You say you need to train her?" Alucard nodded.

"Good. Take Seras with you. She could use training in some of her Vampiric qualities." Alucard's eye twitched slightly, but I could barley see it, so chose not to comment. Finally, he bowed in consent. He then turned to me.

"Pack your bags."

A/N: By the by, I need new funny disclaimers. They must be original, and if you give me one, you'll get credit for it.


	2. Seras' Strength

Hi! I have no votes yet. If no one votes, ill be forced to go with the identical demon sisters. Im so sorry its taking this long to get this done. Every three sentences I get writers block for the rest of the day! Hence, I will probably not get this one out fast enough. There will, however, be some things appearing on fictionpress as soon as I get registered, so keep an eye out for me there. Now, on with the recognition!

Animeotakufreak: Thanks so much! Its happy reviews like yours that keep me writing!

ChiX-hime and Alchemist Zeal: Wow! Long and difficult name. I had to check it five times to get it right! Question: did you mean you were in class when you read the story? Naughty naughty! Not that I'm one to talk. Any way, do I get a cookie even if I do update?

Disclaimer: All your Hellsing are _not_ belonging to me!(sob)

Chapter two

After telling Seras what was going on, Alucard had transported us both to a secluded spot in some mountain range. I was walking around, seeing what there was to see, when Seras piped up.

"Master, there's nowhere to sleep! And there's no food for Scott!" Alucard chuckled.

"I know. The purpose of bringing you both here is to make you stronger, not molly coddle you." Seras looked nervous. I thought for a second, then voiced an opinion.

"So, I have to hunt for myself, Seras has to find a way to not burn in the sun, and your gonna watch and laugh at our poor attempts." He grinned. I nodded.

"Ok, lets get to it. I still have my bow; I'll bet I can bag something for dinner. See you all in an hour." As I walked off, I heard Seras whining at her Master, saying that it wasn't fair. I shook my head. Some vampire she was. I only hopped that this could work out for her, to get stronger, maybe gain control over some of her vampire abilities. I stalked through the bushes for the better part of half an hour before I caught sight of something. I leveled my bow and pulled the string back. Just before I loosed, I heard Seras cry,

"Don't shoot! It's me!" I quickly pointed at the ground.

"Geeze, Seras, I almost let go! What are you doing out here, I thought you were with Alucard?" she nodded meekly.

"Master sent me out to hunt just like you. He also said to tell you not to waste too much energy, because of a training exercise he wants to put us through." I was walking towards her when an owl hooted right behind her, making us both jump.

"That was _loud_." She complained. I agreed whole-heartedly. In the woods, the wild noises sometimes sounded louder, more un-tamed, than in the city or a small town. She shivered.

"You didn't drink anything before we left, did you?" she shook her head.

"No, but that's not why I'm cold. I have a really bad feeling. These woods are spooky, lets walk together." I said sure, and we went off. About ten minutes more of walking, and I saw a large rabbit to my left. Seras snapped her head to the right. We looked at each other for a brief moment, then dove off in opposite directions. I managed to bag the bunny, and Seras came back bearing a sizable black bird. We both beamed with pride. When I inspected Seras' catch, I found it to actually be a rather runty raven. She flopped it over, suddenly perturbed.

"What's wrong?" I asked. She sighed.

"Well, it's just that, I've never actually drank living blood before. At least, not straight from the source. And I wouldn't even begin to know where to bite." She sighed again. Then, she brightened.

"Heck, why don't I just wing it?" she blinked, then giggled at her un intended pun. I shook my head.

"Well, I like ravens, so I'm just gonna walk away while you figure that out." She nodded as I walked off. Along the walk, I had left marks on the trees, ago that I would know my way back. It still took me ten minutes to walk back. When got there, Alucard was up a tree, slouched in its branches, almost looking dead. I shook my head. _He _is_ dead, you dolt._ I sighed. I was getting romantic notions again. I had to stop that. Alucard was the type to only love him self. I didn't have a chance. He opened his eyes and rolled his head to look at me.

"Nice bow work." He said. I blushed. He had been using his shadows to spy on me! What if he had been doing this a lot, like say, when I was changing? Again, had to get those thoughts out of my head. I got to work on the rabbit. Using the tip of an arrow, I slashed it open. It then occurred to me that I would need a fire. I discarded the rabbit for the time being, an went off for some tinder and firewood. When the faire was made, I got the meet from the bunny cooked up, and had myself a nice meal. By that time Seras had come back, slightly more flushed, and was looking at the stars. When I finished, Alucard jumped down from the tree.

"It's time you two did something useful." He said. Seras looked up at him in confusion.

"Master, you sound mad. Did we do something wrong?" she looked worried. Frankly, if _I_ was somewhat immortal and Alucard sounded angry at me, I'd be running for the hills. I would have to re think my won views about Seras. She was stronger than she looked. Maybe being able to hold on to your humanity as strongly as she did after death was what_ truly_ showed strength. To shed your conscience and kill is easy. To drink blood and worry about who died to give it to you is quite another. I was jolted out of my thoughts by a large black dog landing on me.

"It is not like you to daydream, Scott." He said, in a mocking tone of voice.

"Just thinking about inner strength." I replied. Alucard grinned.

"This exercise is on hunting your prey, when that prey is humanoid, and able to think like one." Seras stood quickly.

"Your not going to pit us against each other, are you?" she asked. He looked up at the moon for a moment, then back down at her.

"No, Police Girl, I am pitting you against me. And I expect you to do better, since you already _have_ the senses to find me." He turned slowly, and walked off into the night. the hound on me dissipated. I stood up. Seras and I looked at each other.

"Do we start now?" I asked. She closed her eyes, waiting for a telepathic message.

"We started two minutes ago." She said. We both looked up, then around, then back at each other.

"Well, good hunting!" I ran into the woods where Alucard had. I could see Seras standing there, trying to choose witch direction to go. Then I realized she had her eyes closed. The sneaky devil was trying to _sense_ where he was. I couldn't do that. He was to far away. But I _could_ pick up on the uneasy feeling he left behind. It was a stripe of great power, indicating that something of the sort had passed recently. I don't know how to explain it. It was like, walking into a cold air current. And I knew witch way it was flowing to. Now I had a trail to follow. And follow it I did, until I ran into a three way split in the energy three minutes later. _Witch one?_ I thought. Then it hit me.

"Follow the strongest, for it's most likely the freshest." I stated out loud. Casting about, I found the strongest one, and was back on the trail. _I feel like a psychic bloodhound…_ I kept thinking. I emerged in a clearing to see Seras and Alucard circling one another. Seras had a war gleam in her eye, and Alucard looked amused. The blond leaped at the red clad nosferotu, trying to knock him over. He slammed her into a tree. I winced. But I now saw that were Seras had the advantage while hunting, I had the advantage now. Alucard would have to be gentile with me if he didn't wish to kill me on the spot. Yes, this could definitely work to my advantage. As I held back at the edge of the clearing, Seras re-gathered herself to attack again. But once more she was easily brushed aside.

"Come on, fledgling! All you have to do is get you fangs at my throat and you win this! Try!" I smiled.

"Fangs at your throat, huh?" I called. He turned and grinned.

"For you, a kiss will have to do." He laughed maniacally as Seras stood to try once more. But I beat her to it, darting in, and leaping past him. He stepped back calling 'you missed' softly as I flew by.

"Think again." I said as I landed in a tree, and pushed off to come in from above. I caught him slightly off guard, but he was ready nonetheless. He caught me and held me, stopping all movement. All movement that is, except that of my head. I darted my face towards his throat, and placed a gentile kiss on his skin. He looked down at me.

"I win." I said. He dropped me. I stood up rubbing my back.

"That wasn't very nice…" I said, making sure nothing was broken. I looked around for Alucard, but found him to have vanished. Then I saw that he was up a tree once again. He was looking up at the stars, seemingly deep in thought. Seras came over.

"Great maneuver, there!" she congratulated me. I nodded.

"That wasn't to shabby yourself, there Seras." She blushed. Our impromptu party was cut short by a rustling in the bushes. It was too big to be a rabbit, but far to small to be a bear. I was getting my bow ready when a figure popped out of the underbrush. I felt my jaw hit the ground. It was a _human! _And a child at that! As a matter of fact, she looked to be only a few years older than me. She had shoulder length lightish brown hair, blue eyes, and wore a navy blue polar fleece hoody with blue jeans. She looked left at the empty clearing, and then she looked right at Seras and me. Then she looked up, and spotted Alucard. She exploded.

A/N: I know, evil, evil cliff hanger. And it won't make much sense till I get the next chapter done. That might take a while. If it does, I'm sorry. As always, till next chapter!


	3. Of Meetings Galore

Hi! And, argh! I hate writers block with a passion. You see, I'm writing this as I go along, with now clear idea of what's happening. That means I find out what's going on only shortly before you do. I really wanna know what happens next! Sheesh. Oh well. At least hear's chapter three. I think things will flow a little more smoothly now, but I'm not making any promises. Oh, and DD? I'm really sorry if I spell you phoenix name wrong in here. I didn't mean too, but I couldn't get a hold of you to check it. Just tell me if it's wrong, and I'll change it. now, one with the recognition!

Aomee: I was not specifically asking you, just any one with a good, or even moderate disclaimer I can jack. And thank you for compliments.

Tora-Yasha Chan: yes, it is good to be back. And now, I'm not lying when I say my computer is correcting your name when I spell it wrong. I am going with the triplets, thanks for your opinion.

CleoKat: I'm so sorry! I hade writers block for the longest time! But now the story is continuing. I hope I haven't lost you for good from taking so long. I'll try my very hardest to update faster from now on. And as for my cliffhangers, I now, im very, very evil.

Ice Appeal: hmm…interesting question. I'm not really sure. We'll have to find out as the story progresses. Also, please stop prodding me. I have a bruise. Thank you, have a pleasant night.

ChiX-hime and Alchemist Zeal: Is that even a number? Who cares. Again, yes, I'm going with the sisters. Be happy. Yes, Scottie ate the bunny. Poor bunny. Oh well, girls gotta eat. Thank you for the cookie. And that last part…eh he he…yeah…

Disclaimer: I got nothin'. No joke, no funny-ness in disclaimer, and no shares in Hellsing.

Chapter Three: On Meetings Galore

"Who are you? Damned nosferotu! This is my territory, leave! Go! Now! Your still here? Why! Go go go go go go go go go!" Alucard looked down at her.

"Who's this?" he wondered out loud to himself. He melted and oozed from the tree, then reformed at the bottom. The girl in blue stared at the whole posses disapprovingly. When he was back in human form, he walked until he was only one step away from the girl.

"You're not human, are you? Let's see what you really are." He extended one finger until it touched her forehead. She blinked, and looked up at his hand, only to succeed in going cross eyed. Suddenly, shadows wrapped themselves around her, encompassing every part of her being. Seras gasped, and I stepped back. When the shadows returned to Alucard, the girl was gone. In her place stood, or rather floated, the most amazing bird I'd ever seen. It was entirely made of water! And it was so hot that it was bubbling. It flew up higher till it was right on level with Alucards face.

"Nooo! You've revealed my true form! Do you have any idea how hard that guise was?" I took a step forward in awe. I was beginning to recognize the shape of the bird.

"You're a Phoenix!" I cried. She turned to face me.

"Of coarse." was all she said.

"But, but that's not possible! Phoenix's are _fire_ creatures! Your completely made out of water!" she cocked her head to the side.

"So? I'm a water phoenix."

"But, when you die, your supposed to go up in flames, then be reborn from the ashes. If you're made of water, you'd go up in steam!" she laughed.

"I've never actually died, so I don't know what would happen if I did." Alucard grinned and took a step back. Pulling the Jackle from within his coat, he said,

"Lets find out." The phoenix shrieked, and tried to fly away. But as drops of water from its wings hit Alucard, he was burned. He stepped back, grinning even more madly than before. The phoenix was flying around in a frenzy. She was about to hit a tree when, Sploosh! She went through it. she did this three times in quick succession before settling down. This wasn't what I was gawking at, though. The water from her wings had burned Alucard, and it was not healing as fast as it should have. A thought slowly formed itself in my head. I looked at the bird.

"Hey!" I said. It jumped.

"What! What!" it seemed very excitable.

"Um…well, I just wanted to ask if…well, if you'd been baptized? Or something like that?" the phoenix looked at me oddly.

"Yeeees. Why do you ask?" I fell back laughing.

"Oh this is too good. Alucard, I know why that thing burned you. It's a water phoenix, that's been baptized." Seras cocked her head to one side.

"I don't get why that would…oh!" she fell into a fit of giggles with me, that took quite some time to end. The phoenix stared, then turned to Alucard.

"Are they always this crazy? Hmm, hmm? Speak up!" he nodded, grinning. I guess the situation must have been somewhat amusing from his point of view. The bird looked back at us.

"Hey, hey! Why'sat so funny? Why!" I stopped giggling long enough to give it an answer.

"Y-you're a holy water phoenix!" I burst out laughing again. Seras could barley stand up, and I had a stitch in my side. Finally, we calmed down enough to keep straight faces. Alucard had a thoughtful look on his face.

"Why don't you stay?" he asked the phoenix. We all stared open mouthed at him. He grinned maniacally at us.

"She would be an excellent training exercise. Unable to die, and unable to be touched." I saw were he was going with this. Seras couldn't touch the bird, or it would burn her. The same would go for me once I died. She would indeed be an excellent training device. Seras looked uneasy at the thought of training with something she couldn't touch, but I was looking forward to such a challenge. The bird calmed down enough to stop squawking questions and accusations at us, and we sat down around my fire. With the exception of Alucard, who was, yet again, up a tree. Seras spoke to the phoenix of her past before and during Hellsing. The watery myth was a sponge for information, and drank up every word. When Seras finally finished her story, the living paradox turned to me.

"So, what's your story, hmm? Tell!" I let out a cackle like giggle, known as the 'ciggle', and started my story, as far back as I could remember. By the time I finished, The Police Girls watch signaled 4:36. about two hours till sunrise. That meant we still had some time to kill. The phoenix said we could stay in her cave through the day if we wanted. We thanked her, when something occurred to me.

"Hey! We don't know you name!" the phoenix cocked her head to one side.

"Name, name? You don't know mine, no you don't. hmm…yes! My name is Encaitare. Yup yup, that's my name!" I ciggled again. Movement caught the corner of my eye, and I turned to look. There I saw thee of the oddest creatures I had ever seen. They looked like humans, but on closer inspection they were scaly! They had bone crowns jutting up from their foreheads, and each carried a long staff. The scaled bits of them were bright green, and they were identical to each other. They looked like human lizard hybrids. They were speaking in hushed tones, whispering very quickly. Then one turned and saw me looking.

"Eep! We've been seen! Quick, you two get out' a hear!" the other two nodded, then vanished. I rubbed my eyes. The remaining lizard girl walked out into the clearing, rather timidly, and introduced herself.

A/N: I hope you like this chapter. I hope I write it well. I hope I get the next one soon, or you'll all sent me to hell. He he! Scottthespy has fun with rhymes.


	4. A Lull In The Meetings

Hi! Argh, this is taking so long! I officially had the most serious case of writers block I have ever had. I hope this all goes well, what with all that I've got planned. Now, recognition time:

Tora-Yasha Chan: Extraordinarily so, yes. And she's like that in real life sometimes too. Yes, DD, you are.

Aomee: Technically, although I would like to, I cannot take the blame…er…credit, for the water phoenix. I _can_ however take credit for realizing she was a _holly_ water phoenix in particular. And thank you.

Alucardloardofvampires: Love, the name. And thank you for the encouragement.

Nighteyes De Dracul: You like my word, don't you? You can use it if you want. Don't forget the hissnigering though!

Chapter four: A Lull In The Meetings

"Hello. I'm, uh, Li'll Gecko. Pleased, to meet you?" she seemed very unsure of herself. Then she noticed Alucard.

"Ah! Vampire!" she back peddled into the bushes. From there we could see her eyes glaring at us. I blinked. Were there…_two_ pairs of eyes for a second? No, I must have been imagining it. The eyes blinked, then she darted out of the bush again, and hissed.

"Bloody vampires! Get out of my mountains!" Seras looked hurt.

"You're the second person tonight to tell us to scram, and I'd like to know just who you are?" the lizard blinked.

"Um…I'm ah…Li'll! Yeah, that's right, Li'll Gecko…just call me Gecko though. Wait! Don't call me any thing! Just get out' a our mountains!" I cocked an eyebrow.

"Our? Don't you mean **your** mountains?" she looked rather shocked.

"N-no! I have friends here! These are our mountains, so there! Yeah, and we don't like vampires messin' the place up, so beat it!" she was much more hostile that she was before. I suspected that when I had seen three of her, it was a set of triplets, that each had their own distinct personality. They were pulling switches. This could get interesting, especially if I didn't tell anyone. By the looks of things they were demon, or at least part demon. Maybe part human, maybe something else entirely. My experience with such things was, to say the least, limited. The lizard girl was still bristling at Alucard and Seras. Alucard spoke up.

"I don't believe we need your advise on were to be when. Now, either join the little group we have started, or leave. Your only other option is death." 'Gecko' narrowed her eyes.

"I don't take orders from trash like you." She hissed. Alucards eyes glinted.

"As you wish, then." He leapt from the tree, and nearly landed on her. Seras squeaked when the girl rolled our way. Alucard took out his guns, and aimed both in her direction. She muttered something under her breath, and the guns flew up just as he pulled the trigger. He grinned sadistically.

"So, a magic user, this should be interesting." He whispered something of his own. Seras squeaked again.

"He's releasing the control art system to level one!" she cried. The phoenix and I both took that as a signal to move back. Alucard had summoned his hellhounds, and was sending them after the creature in front of him. However, each time one got near, it was obliterated by a well-placed bolt of magic that seemed to come from the bushes themselves. Alucard finally managed to hit her with one of his guns. She flew back into the foliage.

"Wow, whoa! Holly macaroni! That was the b-b-b-best fight I've seen in a long time!" exclaimed the phoenix. However, it seemed as thought the fight was just beginning, as the girl came out of the undergrowth.

"Enough! This is foolish, to fight when we have truly no qualm. Lay down your weapons, and I will lay down mine." I looked at the bushes she had come from. Sure enough, another set of eyes. So it seemed my theory was right. I wouldn't say anything though. Not yet, anyway. But I would make it that much more difficult to keep their little secret. I took a breath.

"Um, if you don't mind my asking, how did you survive that shot? Those guns are used almost nightly to kill vampires. That's a lot of fire power to withstand without a scratch," she had an answer all ready for me though.

"I'm part dragon." She said simply. Alucard blinked, a slow smile forming on his face. He burst out laughing, the crazed sound scaring away many a forest animal.

"No wonder then." He said cryptically. Unfortunately for him, I knew what he meant, and got to burst his bubble of mysteriousness.

"Dragons and vampires are natural enemies; no wonder you two fought so quickly." I stated. Gecko looked at me.

"Yes, yes, that's it exactly. Who are you?" she asked.

"My name," I said, getting to my feet. "Is Scott. At your service." I gave a low bow. She giggled.

"I like you, Scott. I think I will join this motley little array. Hopefully there will be no other assassinations, though." She chuckled calmly. I guessed her to be the oldest and wisest of the three I had seen. They were almost, in a way, like the power puff girls. This one was calm, the leader type, the first had been shy, and relatively fearful, then there was the ruff and tumble fighter. But these were no science experiments gone wrong. I had to ask.

"What exactly _are_ you? I mean, I've read a lot of lurid literature, but I've never heard of anything like you." She sighed and sat down with one knee up and the other stretched out along the grass. Looking up at the stars she said: "I'm a lot of things. But I think you meant to ask what species I am, did you not?" I nodded. She continued.

"Well, I already told you I was part dragon, but im also part demon. And, believe it or not, part human." Encaitare sidled up to her and looked her straight in the eye.

"Yep, yep! I've sensed hers about. Lots of times! Yep yep!" the bird had said hers. She obviously knew that there was more than one. But like me, she was keeping that secret. Or maybe she just had a weird way of talking. I looked at my watch.

"What the! It's all ready a quarter to six! That gives us twenty minutes to find a shelter from the sun!" Encaitare shot up off the ground.

"Vampire friends in sunlight? This no good! They die! Again! Come, come with me, me. I know a good, sun tight cave, yes I do. Follow me follow me." We did so, and came to a vast network of caves. The watery entity lead us through several passages, calling out chirps and whistles that made certain mosses on the wall glow. I was betting that was for my benefit. The rest of the group could see in the dark just fine. She turned one final corner, with us in tow, and came to a magnificent cave. There were raised stones that would work as beds, a large amount of glowing moss, and a clear fresh water stream running on one side. The place was troglodyte paradise! I gazed at it with wide eyed wonder. Alucard smiled.

"This will do." He said. Every one took a seat and chose a spot to sleep. Gecko said she would take first watch. I somehow figured she would be meeting with her companions during this watch. I was too tired to care though, and as soon as my head hit the makeshift pillow, I fell into a deep sleep.

A/N: Bah! stops working, and I don't get to update even though I'm done the chapter. Bah. Now, if I use some words that not every body gets, because I do, in actuality, read the dictionary, please just ask about it in a review. Your answer will come with your acknowledgement. By the by, in this chapter, as you may have noticed, there are no new characters. They are NOT done coming yet. I just needed a break from all the surprise entrances. And a little time to develop a few characters. So anyway, till next chapter!


	5. Another Odd Creature

Hi! I'm happy because, although this took longer than expected, I still have it done now, and part of the next chapter! …I have nothing more to say. Recognition time!

Anquloce: That's cool! You sound like the kind of person my group would love to hang with. Thanks for the compliment!

Tora-Yasha Chan: What is this, your tenth review? You're even more frequent with this than _I_ am! Thank you once again for your uplifting huggles and noogies.

Disclaimer: Late for school! Gotta run! Don't own Hellsing! That's no fun!

Chapter Five: Another Odd Creature, Otherwise Known As: The Priest and The Half-Pint

I woke because something heavy was sitting on my chest. Opening my eyes, I nearly fell out of…rock. There was, perched on top of me, a small, bearded little man, wielding a battle ax much too heavy looking for him. He sat there, staring at me, looking like a ticked of Scotsman. His eyes were big, he was red in the face, and breathing heavily, and I couldn't help but be mystified at his size. He was a miniature dwarf. Just as I opened my mouth to say something, the let out an angered yell.

"You darn human-and-other folk come messing up my cave! The phoenix is welcome, but then _you_ lot show up! What does a man hafta' do to get a little privacy?" he asked. I couldn't help it, I burst out laughing.

"Maybe it would help if you were more than three inches tall, and could actually lift your weapon." I said, using one hand to lift him off of me. He struggled and kicked, only to succeed in spinning himself around.

"Put me down, you gasa fratin…rock chewin'…big…" his voice trailed off as Seras came over, having just woken up, to inspect my find.

"What is it?" she asked groggily, poking him with her finger. He glared at her and started up a whole new string of made-up profanities. I sighed.

"As far as I can tell, he's a dwarf, but even the smallest dwarves I've heard of aren't this small." I set him down on the stone slab beside me. He glared up disapprovingly.

"How dare you! I am from the honored and feared Galba Clan! None can defeat us!" he went into an unintelligible spiel about how great he and his clan were. Lost some where in the middle of it was something about his being their, 'Sartha'. A very special honor it was, to be this small, it meant great strength. _In great numbers…_ I thought to Seras. She giggled. When the little guy finally tuckered himself out, he sat down satisfied and said: "There, now that you know what I am, aren't you afraid?" Seras looked at him.

"Sorry, I kinda lost you there in the middle, could you start over?" he fell off the rock. I shrugged and sat up. Everyone was awake now, whether by the dwarfs shouting, or their own initiative, I would probably never know. Seras yawned and grabbed the mini brush from my bag of clothes. I decided that I was presentable enough as it was. Seras Returned to baiting the dwarf, only making him louder and louder. I thought it pertinent to leave before I went as out of my mind as Alucard. Out side, I found gecko still on watch duty. I blinked.

"You were up all day? Wow, that's some reserve." I sat down next to her, enjoying the cool evening breeze. She shifted uncomfortably. So, we were back to the shy one were we? She started to say something, then stopped. She turned her gaze to the forest surrounding us.

"S-some one's coming!" she said, surprised. I strained my ears, and soon I heard it too. The sound of some one crashing through the underbrush. As we listened, the sound grew louder, until they seemed quite close. Suddenly, Alucard appeared at the entrance to the cave.

"The Vatican dog has come." He said cryptically, his mouth twisted into a grin so sadistic, Gecko and I were both driven to draw away from him. Seras walked out, snapped her attention to the trees, and dropped her mouth open.

"No, no! He can't of followed us here!" she cried. She darted back into the cave, moving so fast I barley saw a blur. I looked to the demon sitting not five feet from me. She shrugged. We turned our attention back to the forest, and the sounds coming from it. In a sudden burst of plant life, a human form emerged. The tall man wore a long, pale beige overcoat and had a huge cross hung around his neck. He was blond and had a scar running down one cheek, with stubble trying desperately to hide the mark. He grinned when he saw Gecko.

"Daemon, you have eluded me for the last time!" he drew a sword, making gecko and I both flinch away. When I risked another look, however, I burst out laughing. He turned his green eyes on me.

"An' jus' _what_ is so funny, lass?" I was laughing so hard I could barley breath, but I managed to say: "Ya' call tha' a sword? Why, tha's not but an elongated garden trowel!" I mimicked his Scottish accent. He glared at me. Then Alucard stepped forward.

"Judas priest." He said. The green eyes snapped to look at Alucard, as if noticing him for the first time. His grin came back.

"Black daemon!" was his only reply. Alucard chuckled.

"Are you so simple minded that you became blind to my presence?" the 'Judas priest' merely glared in reply. I could see that a hell of a fight was coming. Though just how any human could stand in battle next to Alucard, I had no idea. Then it hit me. This must have been the priest I had heard the older soldiers talking about. One 'Paladin Alexander Andersong', a regenerator. So that was why he was so eager looking. He wouldn't die. I thought it a good idea to distance myself from the coming battle, and so stood to back away. However, as I took a step back, I tripped on the edge of my robe, and fell…forward…right into the middle of the battle.

A/N: um…yeah. I really have nothing to say, except that, I really am late for school. By all, till next chapter!


	6. Developments

Hi! Well every body, this at least is getting on the road now. I've only got one more character to introduce. That's not this chapter, but next. By the by, NEED DISCLAIMERS! I have officially run out of disclaimers, so you need to think some up for me. As always, you will get recognition for them, and all that jazz. Please remember, disclaimers must be original, funny, and pertain to Hellsing. Ok. That's all. I'm done now.

Tora-Yasha Chan: Yes, the 'tea-cup dwarf' is yet another character inspired by one of my friends. Matt, if you're out there reading this, you've been acknowledged by some one. That means your character is a hit.

Disclaimer: Out of ideas…can't make a rhyme to save my life…disclaimer status degrading…no more ways to say I don't own Hellsing…etc...

Chapter five: Developments

I stood there, looking on in paralyzed terror, as one of those oh so sharp garden trowels came my way. I felt sure I was going to die. Then a white-gloved hand pushed me to the left, and a red clad shoulder got between me and the sword. Alucard had taken the hit for me. I looked up to see him grinning despite the wound in his shoulder. We held like that for some moments, the paladin with his hand raised from throwing the sword, Alucards back turned slightly to the priest, and me cupped in the curve of his body. His coat had fallen forward and hidden the Iscariot from my view. I peeked around the fabric and saw the priest was looking at Alucard strangely.

"Monster, did you just save someone…of your own accord?" he spoke softly. Alucard only grinned.

"She is to be my fledgling. I do care for those who prove they are worthy of it." a flash of fear passed through those green eyes.

"Is to be? Is she…is she still _human?_" he looked horrified at what he had nearly done.

"What do you care if she's human? She's been in our company, surely she deserves to die, just like my commander!" Seras was standing at the entrance to the cave. She had fire in her red eyes. The paladin took a step back.

"Yes, that's right, you killed an innocent man! He did nothing but try and protect the people of London, and you killed him for it! If anything, I'd say _your_ more at fault than even _we_ are! You delight in battle and killing things! Your more bloodthirsty than I am, and yet you say that _I'm_ the monster? The draculina? You just about killed a child!" she dove back into the cave, away from the paladin. He looked at me again.

"A child?" he whispered. I stepped forward.

"I'm fifteen. You seem like a very kind and gentle man, clouded by hatred." He looked at me in open-mouthed awe. Alucard's chuckle sounded behind me.

"You can see why I like her." The priest swallowed.

"B-but you mean to make her as ye are! A daemon, a creature of the night! How can you say that you like her?" I tilted my head to the right.

"Your immortal, right?" I asked of the priest. He nodded.

"Well, would _you_ like to live forever, watching everything and everyone you loved dieing, crumbling to dust? For your information, I _want_ to become a vampire. Then I can stay with Alucard forever, and we can talk of many thing and…and…" I blushed. I was beginning to sound like a love struck dreamer. Encaitare had come to see what was happening, and now voiced her thoughts.

"Too much fighting! You all mess up good vibes from cave. Stop it stop it stop it! you stopped? Good good." She flew back into the cave. Just as she was going in, who should come out but the three inch dwarf. He took one look at the cross around the Paladin's neck, and exploded into yet _another_ string of not-quite-profanities.

"You seta gifrin, hinto flagen, greeble manglin' son-of-a-priest! What are_ you_ doin' here? Come ta' play an' be happy an' sit in my cave? I think not! Get away from me you flip traden jo…" he didn't have time to finish his sentence however, as at that moment, he popped. The sound reverberated through the trees, and when I dared to look again I saw…he was still there. Only now an inch taller. He stood there blinking for a minute, the looked down at himself.

"I'm bigger!" he said this with extreme happiness, and leapt into the air as he did. He came back don and landed with his feet firmly planted and his arms up in the air. I couldn't help it. I giggled.

"I thought it was an honor to be that small?" I inquired. He huffed at me.

"This is the untapped strength of the Sartha! Get us mad, and we grow! Ha ha ha ha ha!" he went into maniacal laughter for a while. Alucard, Alexander Andersong, and I all watched him until I came up with a suggestion.

"Any one fancy a game of chess?" the priest and the vampire both looked at me. Then, much to their horror it seemed, they voiced the same thought at the same time.

"You play chess?" they looked at each other sharply.

"Paladin, I thought you would be too busy destroying my kind to play games?" the priest only shrugged.

"And I thought you were to much of a monster to take interest in human activities." Alucard grinned.

"There are some things that you humans have made that are worthy of my attention. There are just so many more that aren't." I didn't want another fight to go on, so I trotted back into the cave and fished out the mini chessboard I had brought along. I thought it might serve to pass the boredom when I was awake during daylight hours, and they were still sleeping. Now I saw it as and opportunity to play matchmaker between my soon to be master and my soon to be enemy. If I could stop them from fighting while we were here, I would see it as a great accomplishment. You never know what you can learn about a person until you meet them in both calm _and_ agitated situations. Alucard smiled at me in a less than monstrous way. Alex, as I had decided to call him, saw the smile and once again was quite surprised. I suppose he had never seen Alucard out of battle conditions, certainly not with someone he liked the way he liked me. A companion. That made me start getting fuzzy feelings again. I shook my head Alucard walked back towards the cave.

"You play him, and afterwards the training for tonight begins." I shrugged and set up the pieces.

"I have to warn you, I suck at this game. I only brought it to get some practice. You'll probably win." To my huge amazement, he laughed.

"And jus' what child makes you think _I'm_ any good?" I thought about that.

"Well, you're a priest, don't holy men usually play a good game of chess?" he laughed outright. It was almost as crazy as Alucards.

"Lass, I'm a fighting priest, and what time I have that I'm not killing monsters, I spend at the orphanage that I help run. I don't have much time for chess." I nodded.

"I see. Terribly sorry for the stereotype." He laughed again.

"What's yer name, lass?" he asked while making his first move.

"Scott." I replied. He drew back.

"Isn't that a boys name?" I pointed at him triumphantly.

"A ha! You're sexist! There should be no distinction betwixt girls and boys names. Besides, there are too many girls who have the same first name as me. Scott is my last name." I moved and took his night. He blinked.

"And you say your not very good at this?" he joked while making his move. Then he snapped his attention to the cave entrance behind me. I twisted around and saw Seras there. She was watching the game with fascination.

"What's up, Seras my girl?" I asked, trying to imitate a valley girl.

"I-I've never played chess before, and I've also…Never seen him being civil." She mumbled the last part. The paladin blinked.

"I had no idea…am I that bad?" he was looking at her in confusion. Seras nodded.

"I was a police officer before I died. My death was extremely frightening. Through all this I've kept my head, but you, quite frankly, scare the wits out of me. You scare me more than Master did before I was turned!" the Paladin stammered.

"But-but…"

"But what? Vampires can't get scared? Think again! I'm still clinging to my humanity. Un-like you." She turned back into the cave. The priest sat looking after her. I tried to think of a way to get the man out of the shock he had fallen into.

"Your in check." I stated. He looked down at the board.

"Am I really that terrifying?" he wasn't paying attention. Maybe it was time to talk.

"From the stories I've heard, yeah, you're that terrifying. Comes out of the night like a specter, draws the silver sword of calamity, and kills anyone who's so much as knowingly talked with a vampire. Then, Alucard shows up! The red clad lord of the night! The monster that protects Hellsing soldiers, he grins wildly as he faces this cross bearing vision of death. The two fight, and oh what a fight! The humane monster and the monstrous human, and you're never sure witch is witch. Vampire using guns to protect, human using swords to destroy. And at the end, when they inevitably tie, the priest of darkness is wrapped in a funnel of holy pages that take him away, and the prince of darkness holsters his guns to report back to his Master. I think the whole thing is terribly romanticized, but the men say that's what happens."

"The men?" Alex looked confused.

"Well yes, the men. The Hellsing soldiers. You've never shown up on a mission that I've gone on, so I have to take their word for it." I sat back and looked up at the moon.

"You, young lass, work for Hellsing." I ciggled

"Naw, it's a weird story actually. I was roaming the streets of London, thinking about how much my life sucked and wishing I could get lost, when I heard steps behind me. It turned out to be a vampire. My first thought? Cool! My second? Wait, this guy is just some punk. I don't want him feeding off me! I fought him as best I could, but in the end he beat me of course. Then Alucard showed up. He saved my life. I thought he just wanted me for himself though, and ran. Then I stopped, determined not to be your stereotypical teenaged, 'Oh I want to die until I actually get the chance'. Then I met sir Integra. Alucard asked if he should kill me to keep their secret safe. Sir Integra said to just modify my mind. But he couldn't. I managed to save the memory. So Sir Integra decided to take me in as a new member. I kept showing great potential, and Alucard wanted to turn me into a vampire. I agreed, and we asked Sir Integra, who said yes. Now I'm here."

"You like hearing yourself talk, don't you lass?" he asked. I smiled and nodded. He sighed.

"Well then, I guess it's my turn, isn't it? I don't really know how I got to working with the Vatican, it just sort of happened. My past before then is hazy, and I only get clear clips from time to time. They usually come while I'm fighting that bla…Alucard." He looked as if he was tasting the name on his tongue. He had probably never said it before. He went back to his story.

"Well, that's why I keep fighting, and killing, I guess. I don't really have anything else that I'm good at, no real calling. And I somehow think that maybe if I kill Alucard, my past will come back to me." I thought about it. Before joining Hellsing many people had told my I should be a counselor or a psychiatrist, and I chose now to exercise those skills.

"Well, have you ever thought that you might not _want_ those memories? I mean, if you've buried them that deep, maybe they should stay there." He eyed me for a minute.

"That's a very deep view, for such a young lass." I just nodded. He sighed and looked up at the heavens.

"What are ye doin' here?" he asked. I kicked my feet and cocked my head to the left.

"I might ask you the same question, Judas priest." He looked at me sharply. I grinned.

"I asked you first." He said. I rolled my eyes.

"Oh cuz' _that's_ so mature. Oh well. I'm here so that Alucard can train me and help me come over to the other side peacefully. Apparently I'm so very powerful I'd end up destroying stuff. Expensive stuff." The priest looked deep in thought.

"And he doesn't want that happening?" I stood up and brushed my knees off.

"No. You seem to have this idea of him as a monster with absolutely no heart. Your right, on one count. But he has things he cares for. Like Sir Integra. As long as I've known them, Alucard has had a deep respect for her. As I understand it, she was _thirteen_ when she found Alucard. Her uncle was trying to kill her, and she released the seal on him, and managed to control him into saving her. Ever since he's been annoying, but faithful." I started toward the cave.

"Were are you going, lass?" he asked, getting up quickly.

"Duh. To get Alucard. He said when the game was over, training begun. The game has ended. Therefore, training begins." I disappeared into the cave. It really was about time we started up for the night.

A/N: Once again, no new character. I needed the time to develop Alex. The next character might be a bit of a surprise, but I hope you all like h…them. Till next chapter!


	7. The Last Addition

Hi! Well well well…this is an interesting chapter. The same friend who let me use the three demon sisters, is also letting me use this new character. Read and enjoy!

Nighteyes De Dracul: That's what I was aiming for, and it seems I've hit it. I wanted to find a way to create suspence, have the good Father still himself, and get him to be civil at least half the time. I did it! Thank you for your review.

Tora Yasha Chan: I think this really is your tenth review. And yes, you've made my little friend Mat a hit. Lets hope it doesn't go straight to his head. As always, thatks for the review.

Aomee: Can't wait for what? I really, honestly have no clue what your trying to tell me. Oh well. Thanks for checking back!

Chap 6ix: the last addition.

Alucard stood in the middle of the clearing, facing Seras and me. We stood ready for whatever he through our way. The Phoenix, teacup dwarf, and priest had all set themselves up at the edge of the trees, watching in fascination. The water-bird hade never seen vampires fight before, the dwarf wanted to get our fighting skills memorized, and Alex still didn't believe that Alucard could be calm enough to teach without ripping his students to pieces. My only question was, _would _he refrain from ripping us to pieces? Gecko was nowhere in sight, and I reasoned that she was off with her sisters. A cloud shifted, and the light of the moon fell on Alucard, throwing him into relief. He lifted his head and looked straight at me, then Seras.

"Tonight you will fend for yourselves, if you help one another, you will be punished. I am going to send my shadows after you. You must defeat them. With that he melted. Encaitare whistled in appreciation, and the dwarf, whose name I still had yet to learn, seemed to be taking notes. Alex just stared on in silence. Two black dogs burst out of the underbrush and broke off to attack the both of us at once. Seras darted to the left, the dog narrowly missing her. I dropped and rolled. Microseconds later the dog landed where I had been. I back words somersaulted to my feet, and crouched. This dog wasn't going to get me. Alucard knew I couldn't beat it strength-wise, so he must have been expecting me to use my head. I thought. What did I know about these hellhounds? They liked being petted. It panted at me, then lunged. I dodged right, but ran my hand along its back as it flew by. As soon as it landed, I was on it, petting it, scratching behind its ears, cooing to it the way pet obsessed people do. The dog rolled over to get a belly rub, then it shot upright. Before I could react, it had me pinned to the ground. I tilted my head to the side.

"Hey, pretty dog, aren't you beautiful? You gonna kill me?" It looked me squarely in the eye. I thought I had a chance, if I could intoxicate it. I brought one hand up to my mouth, and used my teeth to pull a hangnail off. The blood flowed slightly, and the dog's attention wavered. As it stated liking the offered wound, I heard a noise. It was like some one whispering. Almost in slow motion, it seemed, I turned to the source of the sound. But before I could see anything, the dog blew up, and Alucard reformed. I stood. He was looking through me at something. I looked over my shoulder. There stood the most frightening cut-and-paste project I had ever seen. It looked as if it came from the mind of a demented and reclusive man, who insisted on staying the mental age of four. The thing had a tattered blue shorts preserving it's modesty, but the very nature of the creature made me question weather it even had modesty to preserve. Half with skin that was sickly and pale, the left half of its frame was just that: frame. A skeletons blank eye socket stared back at me, and un-covered teeth grinned a deadly grin. The hair that covered the fleshy side of the head was scraggily and blond, and fell in the one eye he had. This eye was black, and seemed to stare sadly into the very depths of my sole. It stepped for ward.

"Are you alright?" it asked in a polite, whispery voice. I mouthed words for a moment, then managed a:

"Yes…" he turned from me, and faced Alucard. A pang of fear shot through me, for I knew what this creature was. A necromancer. And old one. One of the order that was half dead themselves. They were zombies that could raise zombies, corpses that controlled corpses. And Alucard, was a corpse. This necromancer though Alucard had been attacking me. And now, he was trying to protect me. The skeletal hand raised, a glowing nexus of power growing on it. I finally found my voice along with my motor functions.

"Wait! Please, don't do this!" I cried the words, running to cover Alucard. The age old master vampire was standing very still, deciding what to do about this threat. The necromancer didn't seem to see or hear me though, and got ready to throw his orb of magic. I did the first thing that cam to my mind then. I flung myself into Alucard's arms, covering his body with my own. He caught me, and we held that position. I looked back and could see the creature trying to decide what to do next. To kill us both, or leave us both alive? I could almost see him drawing a conclusion.

"Mortal," spoke that same whispery voice, "Why do you protect him? What is he to you?" I swallowed hard.

"H-he's my friend." The necromancer looked at me with a deep, sad stare.

"He tried to kill you." I shook my head.

"I want to be a vampire, he was training me, not attacking!" I winced. I want to be a vampire. It had sounded like your average teenage escape. I want to die and leave this world behind. I don't know what's on the other side, but I will when I get there. I shuddered and stepped away from Alucard, though close enough that I could still cover him if the need arose. His power affected the dead, such as Alucard, but I was immune to his magic. If he wanted me dead, he would have to wait till I was touching Alucard again, or use a physical attack.

" Please, that didn't come out the way I meant it to. I know what it is that I'm doing. Its not a wish to be dammed, its not just a 'oh this sounds cool' thing. I've been thinking about it for some time, and, well, I want it. I want to spend eternity with Alucard." That had sounded so corny. But it seemed to work. The necromancer lowered his outstretched skeletal arm.

"Do you love him?" I balked. Love Alucard? With all my heart, yes! But…I couldn't tell Alucard that. He didn't love me in return, and that would only make things complicated and awkward.

"I love him as a companion, just as he does me." Was the only answer I could give. For a long time nothing was said, then the dwarf howled.

"Good to finally have someone sane here!" he cried, then climbed the nearest tree in order to give him equal height with the necromancer. For a minute, I though they were going to attack each other, but then the dwarf extended his still-too-heavy axe, his version of a friendly handshake. The necromancer smiled a shy grin, and shook -er- hands? With the dwarf. He then turned to the rest of us and said;

"My name, is Alex."

A/N: Ooh, another Alex, what can this possibly mean? Now I get to start on the scene if been wanting to do since I found out there were two Alex's. He he he…time to leave you all. And please, I really do need disclaimers. If anyone out there has the heart and the time to send me one, the help would be greatly appreciated.


	8. Reasonings For a Long Absence

Hello again, fans and casual readers alike. It is with a head hung in shame that I return to you. It has been...years, since I started these...there are numerous reasons for this one going unfinished. Deaths in the family, moving to different cities, growing older and looking at the writing and being horrably embarrassed by the quality and the _compleat_ and utter Marry Sue-ness of the character. But, probably the biggest of all...many of the characters where created by a close friend who hurt me, very, very badly. I still havent properly gotten over it. Out of the blue one day, I get an email screaming at me, calling me and all our mutuall friends all manner of names that cannot be repeated here, cussing, and chewing us all out for things we either didnt do, or shouldnt make her so mad. I asked her to appologies, and she screamed at me again. I had thought we where good friends, and I didnt see this comming, none of us did. Every time I looked at these chapters, it filled me with a depression so deep I had to shut down my computer to stave off a pill. I dont beleive in taking medications for sadness, so instead, I set this story, and, unfortunatly, all its readers, aside untill I was able to deal with it. The characters are an intrinsic part of the story, and I cannot simply right them out, which means I will have to write about my dear friends life and personality, thinking with each word what she did to me. I beleive I am finnaly capable of that. However, my writing style has changed, and I do not know if finishing the story now will make any sence, with two very different styles. I will try, and I will do my best to end it properly. I am so sorry fo the long wait, and the dissapointment of those who finnaly gave up on these. I will try my very hardest to finish this story at the very least, with a good ending, so that new readers can stop being dissapointed, and perhapse, if I am _very_ lucky, old readers can stumble across and finish.

With sincerest appologies to all involved,

Scottthespy


	9. Black Humor and Accepting the New Kid

And so, another chapter goes up, slightly edited from writings I made before my long break. The puntuation and spelling have been, to the best of my current abbilities, cleaned up. Other than that, I mostly left it alone. There is one more chapter written from before my...small volley of trageties. Afterwords...well, we can only hope I can make this story work in the long run.

Disclamer: This one comes from lycanine, who put it in his review: "All authorised copyrights belongs to the nippon man who doodles horrible sidelines graphics of Hellsing. Its true, he is a horrible artist."

Chapter seven: the fun begins

The shy smile wavered as the half skeleton noticed the look on the paladins face. I was thinking of a tact full way to ask what was wrong. Encaitare thought of a way, though it was far from tact full.

"What is wrong? Priestling! You mope, you scowl. You are making my head hurt from your un-happy-ness!" The 'priestling' stood up.

"Jus' having a hard time believing I share a name with a creature like _tha'_." The necromancer winced. There was no other word for what he did. He took a step back and cast his sad gaze to the ground. I suddenly found myself feeling sorry for the zombie. After all, was it his fault he looked that way? Was it even his fault he was a necromancer? We didn't know his story, it could be some tragic tale of loss and heartbreak and betrayal! But here Andersong was being so cruel. I once again had my glory taken away, for when I went to say something to the one-hundred percent living Alex, Seras beat me too it.

"How dare you! He just tried to save her life! And all you do is put him down. In all fairness, can he help what his name is? Or do you just hate everything that your closed minded view has deemed 'unnatural'? You, Alexander Andersong, are specist!" she huffed at him, then turned her back. He blinked.

"I'm…what now, lass?" he inquired. She turned back to him with fire in her eyes.

"Specist. Any species that's not absolutely alive, you hate. Before you even get to know anybody from that species, you automatically hate them." I tried to hold in a giggle, but Seras heard it.

"And you think its funny? Or maybe you just think my lecturing him when I'm not entirely comfortable with the concept of un-dead myself is hilarious. Well, what is it?" she glared disapprovingly at me. I was laughing to hard to even breath, but I tried to answer anyway.

"I-I…he he he he..Ser…as…you…ha ha ha!" my initial attempts failed, but after a few moments, I got myself under control enough to answer her.

"Seras, it was nothing to do with the topic, or the choice of words. Its just…you made a corpse joke." The whole group stared at me as if I was nuts. Witch I guess I was.

"A joke about vampires? Black humor at its finest? You people need to live a little. You're so in the dark." No one understood what I was saying, until a slow grin appeared on Encaitare's face.

"I get it! Vampires, dark? Ha! That's a good one!" she rolled around laughing, as the others slowly realized what I was talking about. Even Alucard grinned, although it might have just been his usual sadistic smile. The dwarf even tried one of his own.

"Ya'd think they un-lived under a stone slab. They really need to get out of the funeral home more often." Seras grinned, finally getting it.

"Oh, give me a break, it's been a killer of a weekend. I've been bored to death with everything lately." I cackled my signature cackle.

"Oh put a socket in it, Seras." She whirled to me and bared her fangs.

"How about yours?" she suggested. To which I replied:

"Bite me."

"That what I was attempting to get across." She pouted.

"Master, they're singling me out for the execution of their jokes!" Alucard's hat slipped an inch.

"My heart beats for you, Police Girl." Seras and I stared, shocked for a moment. Had Alucard honestly just made a joke? It certainly seemed that way. No one else seemed to notice though, as the maelstrom of jokes continued. But it didn't seem fair that only the vampires were getting made fun of…

"Hey Encaitare? Knock it off with the jokes, you're all washed up." She stopped for a full ten seconds before bursting out in yet more laughter.

"Funny, funny! You are hilarious!" I smiled. Finally, someone liked my jokes! I figured the best way to stop the priest from glaring, would be to get him directly involved in the joking. I searched my imagination for the perfect joke. Nothing came to me though. Until Alucard cut in. _Having trouble including the Judas priest?_ He asked. I sighed inwardly. _I want the perfect thing to bring him in. Do you have any ideas?_ He chuckled. _Surely someone with your creativity can come up with something._ I racked my brain for a moment more, until it hit me. It was so simple. But I would need some one to set it up for me. I could sense Alucard still hanging on the edge of my consciousness. _Hey, master? _I thought wickedly. He drew nearer. _Master?_ He questioned. I answered him. _Well you are. Or at least, you will be soon. Anyway, I need someone to help me with the set up for this joke. Can you do it?_ I registered amusement. _Anything that insults that so-called priest is worthy of my attention._ I told him what to say, and he agreed. I rubbed my hands together. Hopefully this would get that scowl off Andersong's face. Alucard looked to the moon.

"Priest, with that grimace, one would almost think you were trying to out do me." I giggled.

"Aww, give him a break. After all, he has to put up a tough façade. He's the one who puts the 'scare' in I-scare-iot." I grinned impishly at the holy man. He glared at me, but I saw his lips flexing. He lost the battle, and ended up laughing. It wasn't my best joke ever, but it had worked. The tense moment was completely over. Alucard shook his head and telepathically told Seras and I that training was a lost cause while we were giggling this much, and that we would resume in an hour. He then departed, leaving us to relay his message. Gecko walked in just as we finished, and said;

"What did I miss?" which elicited more laughter from every one. Eventually, we all got settled down into groups. Encaitare and Andersong went off to talk about God, Seras and Gecko found a quiet place to reflect on life and immortality, and the dwarf was eavesdropping on everyone. That left me to talk with 'Alex'. I sat on the grass and offered him the seat next to me. He shyly sat down, staring up at the sky. I noticed something different about him. His skin looked a little more alive, and his eye had changed color. As a matter of fact, he now had two eyes. The one in the living side of his face was green, and normal looking. But the one in the skull side was the exact invert of its brother. The white part was black, the pupil was white, and the iris, or colored part, was bright red. He looked a lot less frightening now. We sat in companionable silence for a while, then he spoke up.

"I was never properly introduced. What is your name?" he said it softly, as if afraid to frighten me away. He was nightmarish, in some respects, but in truth I found him fascinating.

"Oh, sorry. My name is Scott. Or at least, that's what I'd like to be called." I offered my hand to shake. He looked at it for a while, then gently placed his right hand in mine. It felt strange, to be shaking hands with a skeleton, but not entirely gross. I blushed when I discovered I was staring at him.

"Um…can I, ask you something?" I looked at my lap.

"Yes, I suppose so." His voice was so whispery.

"Why do you look different now? I mean, you looked a lot more…dead, when you were threatening Alucard." Alex looked up at the moon. He seemed uneasy about this topic. So I tried to switch to some other subject.

"Uh, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. We could talk about me instead. How 'bout it? Anything you wanna know?" he turned his head and looked very steadily at me.

"You are trying to make me feel more comfortable. I attempted to kill your friend and nearly you in the process. Why do you feel the need to be polite?" I sat still for a moment, then flopped back onto the grass.

"You only did that stuff to try and save me. So technically, it would be terribly uncouth of me to be impolite." He looked away. There was a long pause.

"I looked as I did because I was calling on my power." I propped myself up on my elbows to look at him again. He met my gaze, and held it steadily. Then I blinked and the moment was lost.

"Oh." Was all I could say. We returned to watching the moon. I closed my eyes and sighed. Then something occurred to me, and I sat bolt upright, staring at Alex. His posture gave away that he knew I was looking, and he eventually turned his head to look at me.

"What's wrong?" his voice was just a breath above the level of wind, and yet I could hear each word perfectly. I grinned.

"Being a necromancer, one would think that you would fit in with a bunch of mythical beings, but it seems to me, that you have a very big difference setting you apart from the rest of us." I explained. He blinked, more or less.

"And that would be? If I may ask." I threw back my head and laughed.

"There's no way you'll fit in with us. You're just too bloody polite!"

A/N: Onward and forward eh? Each time I read the name of the character who's creator hurt me, my heart twinges, but for the sake of finishing this project, I must go on. I refuse to state which character/characters they are responsible for, for I beleive that may result in some hatred directed towards them, and that would just ruin the story. I only mentioned the whole catastrophe to explain why it took so very, very long to get back on track. Till next chapter!


End file.
